US troops arriving in Liberia to help contain Ebola

**Albany Rifles** · 04 Oct 14,, 15:25

Update to OOB

TF out of FT Campbell

MED
BIO CHEM HAZMAT
MP BN
AVN Assets

More to follow

Bootomline...plenty of guns

**Gun Grape** · 04 Oct 14,, 19:42

Originally Posted by zraver

was anyone else's reaction- where are their covers?

They are on a flight line. Covers are a FOD hazard.

**DonBelt** · 04 Oct 14,, 20:46

Originally Posted by Gun Grape

They are on a flight line. Covers are a FOD hazard.

Come on Z-man, you know that. They won't let us wear fire helmets when we do air-med evac.

**zraver** · 05 Oct 14,, 01:18

Originally Posted by Gun Grape

They are on a flight line. Covers are a FOD hazard.

Chalk that up to things a tanker doesn't know.

**zraver** · 05 Oct 14,, 01:28

Originally Posted by DonBelt

Come on Z-man, you know that. They won't let us wear fire helmets when we do air-med evac.

I don't wear a fire helmet. I've only ever helped load 1 patient and I had my hat on.

**Shek** · 05 Oct 14,, 01:34

Originally Posted by zraver

was anyone else's reaction- where are their covers?

No covers on the flight line.

Their weapons probably flew in the cargo bay. The airfield is secure.

**Bigfella** · 05 Oct 14,, 02:48

Originally Posted by zraver

Chalk that up to things a tanker doesn't know.

Guess you guys are 'feet on the ground' types.

**Gun Grape** · 05 Oct 14,, 04:41

Originally Posted by zraver

Chalk that up to things a tanker doesn't know.

The medical abbreviation for the things on that list is TNTC (to numerous to count)

**GVChamp** · 05 Oct 14,, 15:59

Originally Posted by zraver

was anyone else's reaction- where are their covers?

My reaction was "why are we sending several thousand soldiers to West Africa?"

Apparently they are doing construction work and supporting logistics. My next reaction was whether we could substitute unemployed Americans for uniformed American soldiers. Or just pay Pakistan or India to send people.

My prior reading suggests that ebola isn't really contagious in normal person-to-person contact but is highly contagious in closer contact that typically happens in healthcare settings, which means healthcare workers are really vulnerable to infection. So the biggest danger to us is sending our health-care workers there, so let's not do that, and other than that I don't really care. I sincerely doubt any West African nations are going to be toppled over this. Their biggest danger is actually the destruction of their already limited health care infrastructure which would lead to the spread of OTHER diseases.
IE, if 20-30% of your nurses and doctors are dead/out of commission from ebola, you might have, I don't know, a measles or chlorea outbreak.

Someone still needs to sub in more health-care workers and as far as I am concerned it shouldn't be anyone from the US (unless they're dumb enough to volunteer, then go right on ahead).

My next concern is that my Wife, working from home, noticed that one physician tried to substitute Domperidone for Risperidone because they sound the same. So maybe Liberians are better off with ebola than US doctors.

**Albany Rifles** · 05 Oct 14,, 20:04

Originally Posted by Bigfella

Guess you guys are 'feet on the ground' types.

A tanker would be aghast to ever have his boots actually touch dirt!

**zraver** · 06 Oct 14,, 00:48

Originally Posted by Gun Grape

The medical abbreviation for the things on that list is TNTC (to numerous to count)

There is a reason we are calld DATs.

Albany, "Death before dismount!"

**zraver** · 06 Oct 14,, 00:50

Originally Posted by Bigfella

Guess you guys are 'feet on the ground' types.

"

If by feet you mean track pads.... walking is for the infantry.

**citanon** · 06 Oct 14,, 02:47

Originally Posted by GVChamp

My reaction was "why are we sending several thousand soldiers to West Africa?"

Apparently they are doing construction work and supporting logistics. My next reaction was whether we could substitute unemployed Americans for uniformed American soldiers. Or just pay Pakistan or India to send people.

My prior reading suggests that ebola isn't really contagious in normal person-to-person contact but is highly contagious in closer contact that typically happens in healthcare settings, which means healthcare workers are really vulnerable to infection. So the biggest danger to us is sending our health-care workers there, so let's not do that, and other than that I don't really care. I sincerely doubt any West African nations are going to be toppled over this. Their biggest danger is actually the destruction of their already limited health care infrastructure which would lead to the spread of OTHER diseases.
IE, if 20-30% of your nurses and doctors are dead/out of commission from ebola, you might have, I don't know, a measles or chlorea outbreak.

Someone still needs to sub in more health-care workers and as far as I am concerned it shouldn't be anyone from the US (unless they're dumb enough to volunteer, then go right on ahead).

My next concern is that my Wife, working from home, noticed that one physician tried to substitute Domperidone for Risperidone because they sound the same. So maybe Liberians are better off with ebola than US doctors.

There is a small but not insignificant chance that Ebola can go airborne and retain its lethality. This chances increases with every additional human patient. If it occurs we're looking at an uncontainable global pandemic with many tens or hundreds of millions dead, collapse of civilization, end of the world type stuff.

Until we get Zmapp and the vaccines stockpiled the current epidemic is certainly a national security threat. In fact, it's an existential threat to the US.

PS - I have a PhD from a first tier US research university and currently work in one on biotechnology research. I am not trying to be alarmist but threat is real and dire. You can take this as a fully informed scientific opinion borne from the best education and information the Western world has to offer.

I agree with you about the health care workers who are in contact with the patients. However, I think using US troops to build installations is absolutely appropriate. I am concerned for the safety of our soldiers given the deteriorating security situation and the potential for terrorist attacks that we have not experienced before, but given the risks to our national security, I don't think we have a choice.

In the mean time, Zmapp production is ramping up, and vaccine candidates are advancing. In a few years I think we will be able to breath a sigh of relief. Right now, however, we are in a window of extraordinary vulnerability.

**zraver** · 06 Oct 14,, 03:29

Thanks for the good news..... All the more reason to crank up the mission in Africa and impose serious for real quarantine of the exposed here and border closures.

**citanon** · 06 Oct 14,, 09:05

Originally Posted by zraver

Thanks for the good news..... All the more reason to crank up the mission in Africa and impose serious for real quarantine of the exposed here and border closures.

Ive been thinking about this but im not convinced. Lets start from the basis of being absolutely ruthless in prioritizing our security. Even then you have to admit that its impossible to completely quarantine these countries, and even if we shut down travel to the us, we cannot shut it down to europe or other one stop from us destinations.

If you then declare travel bans ir quarantine zones, that may have the effect of spark8ng an exodus. This would in turn lead to an even faster and wider spread of te disease while creating perverse incentives for those with cintact to ebola infected individuals to avoid detection. Thus quarantine measures could cause the very things they are supposed to prevent.